


Try, Try Again

by Darkest_Mercy



Category: Naruto
Genre: Dai-nana-han | Team 7 (Naruto) Feels, Dai-nana-han | Team 7 as Family (Naruto), F/F, F/M, Female Uzumaki Naruto, Oblivious Uzumaki Naruto, Protective Haruno Sakura, Protective Kyuubi | Nine-tails | Kurama, Sakura totally does though, Sasuke loves Naruto, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It, he just doesn't realize it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-18
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:42:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25356424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkest_Mercy/pseuds/Darkest_Mercy
Summary: The war ended, they won. But the world was destroyed in the process. Naruko is ready to accept her fate and die with her team but Kurama has other ideas. He's not about to let this girl and her team die in a battlefield with no one else around. Not if he can change it.Naruko expected to die on the battlefield with her team on either side of her. She did not expect to wake up as an eight year old in an apartment she hasn't lived in for years. Kurama is going to have a lot of explaining to do but at least now she has a chance to change things. To keep people from dying and, hopefully, keep the war from ever happening. She just needs to find her team first.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura & Uchiha Sasuke & Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura/Yamanaka Ino, Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto
Comments: 16
Kudos: 276





	1. I Have Seen Too Much

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so this is a first for me. I've never actually written a Naruto time-travel fic before let alone a fic where Naruto is a girl. I'm going to do my best here and constructive feedback is ALWAYS welcome. If I make an error in the original timeline somewhere I apologize, I'm going to do my best to make sure I'm as accurate as possible when referencing the original timeline throughout the story but a LOT happens and sometimes I may get some things mixed up. If you notice anything glaringly wrong, please let me know and I will do my best to correct the error. 
> 
> I hope y'all enjoy this story though! I, for one, looooove the time travel fics within this universe. There's so much potential and so much material to work with so I can't wait to play around with it a bit!

The world was covered in ash and blood and death. Everywhere she looked there was only destruction and death. Fires raged in the distance, burning the last remnants of her home to the ground. Not that it mattered anyway. There wasn’t anyone left to claim the village as their own except for her and her teammates. And even they were barely hanging on at this point. She could feel the life literally draining out of her with the blood and knew she would soon join the countless other bodies her him in the afterlife. They won the war, but they lost the world. 

“Naruko…” the voice is choked and barely there. She can hear the blood in the speaker’s throat, the way the vocal cords can barely make sound around it. 

Naruko turns her head as much as possible and meets the onyx eyes of her rival turned best friend turned enemy, “Sasuke.”

“I’m sorry…” Sasuke’s eyes are growing dull as the life leaves him and Naruko can only think it’s such a pity the dumbass figured out he fucked up right as they’re dying. But at least he finally understood. 

“Forgive you…teme,” Naruko thinks she manages some form of a smile but she can’t really be sure, she lost the feeling in her face a few minutes ago. 

Sasuke opens his mouth to answer, coughs up blood, winces, “Dobe.”

Now Naruko is the one coughing as her body tries to remember how to laugh at the nickname. God, how she hated it when she was younger and now all she wants is to hear it for the rest of her life. Why did the idiot have to stop being so stubborn _now_?

“Idiots,” this time the voice is feminine and raw and she knows exactly who it belongs to as well. 

Sakura is on her other side, her pink hair coated in ash and blood and her green eyes barely open anymore. She’s closer to death than either of them and it breaks her heart to know she will be in a world without her even if only for a few minutes. A world without either one of them is too much to bear but she’s consoled knowing she will follow shortly after. 

_**Not if I have anything to say about it** ,_ the growl comes from within her this time. It’s agitated and weaker than she’s ever heard but still there. And still very much unwilling to give up. 

_Kurama, I’m sorr_ y, Naruko knows the fox won’t have a chance if his host dies but she also doesn’t have the strength to release him now. She barely has the strength to breathe anymore. Sasuke’s eyes have closed and Naruko doesn’t think she sees Sakura’s chest moving anymore. 

_**This is probably going to hurt, brat but it’s better than letting all of you die. You trust me?** _

Again, Naruko wishes she could laugh. Like there was any doubt left she trusted the fox sealed inside of her, _Always, Kurama._

_**Good. Get ready then, this is going to get bumpy.** _

Naruko tries to respond but her mind is slipping, she’s slipping, and everything around her is going dark and quiet. She almost welcomes it when the end finally comes. When she can finally _stop_. 


	2. I Haven't Seen Enough

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This isn't beta'd so I apologize for any errors! I'm trying not to be too happy-go-lucky but also keeping it somewhat light where I can. Hope y'all enjoy!

Naruko realizes very quickly Kurama wasn’t kidding about the pain. Whatever he was doing  _ hurt _ . It felt like all of her chakra channels were on fire, burning her up from the inside out and if she still had the strength she knew she would be screaming. Instead, her broken body writhes pitifully on the ground which causes more pain to flare up around her numerous injuries. She thinks she would rather die than continue suffering through this torment. 

She isn’t sure how long the pain lasts, how long she writhes in the field next to the bodies of her teammates. It could be seconds or it could be years. It feels like years. Just when she thinks it can’t get  _ any _ worse it increases tenfold and now she is screaming. Her voice is raw and painful and scrapes up her abused throat but nothing can hold it in any longer. There’s too much, too much, too much…

**✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧**

When Naruko jolts awake with a strangled gasp she’s surprised. Not just because she’s in a lumpy bed with a very familiar ceiling above her but because she didn’t expect to ever wake up again much less in the apartment from her younger years. And even more shocking is how… _ whole _ she feels. She can’t remember the last time she felt so good. She’s rested and her stomach isn’t clawing at itself in hunger and for once her throat doesn’t feel parched and dying for even a small  _ sip _ of water. All the pain from whatever Kurama did has also faded like it was never even there, like she imagined it all.

She wishes she could just lay here in bed forever, listening to the birds -- _ actual birds _ \-- outside her window and smell the summer breeze drifting in. But there’s too many unanswered questions and she knows the first place to go looking for answers.

She sits up and crosses her legs, her hands folded in her lap and her eyes slipping closed. She retreats into herself like she’s done so many times before, looking for that vibrant chakra that’s always been inside of her even when she didn’t know it. Kurama has been her constant companion for so long now going to his place in her mind is as easy as breathing and she can’t wait to lay into the fox for whatever stunt he’s pulled this time.

Instead of the open expanse she’s used to though she finds a dingy, flooded corridor and almost groans. If she ends up dealing with cranky Kurama who only wants to kill everyone again she might scream. He has explaining to do, and he is  _ not _ allowed to vanish. Plus, she really doesn’t want to knock sense into him again. He can be so unbelievably stubborn when he tries.

When she rounds the last corner and finds herself face to face with the cage she remembers from her childhood she does find a  _ very _ annoyed Kurama waiting for her but she also doesn’t sense any of the bloodlust he used to practically ooze. Maybe she got lucky and he’s whole too.

“Kurama?” she asks tentatively, unsure what kind of response she’s going to receive. Just because she doesn’t sense the bloodlust doesn’t mean it isn’t there. The fox can be crafty about hiding his desires when he feels like it.

“Brat,” the fox huffs.

She grins now, recognizing the tone of fond exasperation in his voice, “Good to see you’re still a bundle of joy. Now, care to explain the  _ hell _ you did?”

Kurama chuckles, “Take a look at yourself and I’m sure even you can piece it together.”

Naruko frowns, glancing down at herself for the first time since waking up and almost falls over, “What. The.  _ Fuck _ . Kurama?”

Now the fox is trying not to outright  _ laugh _ at her, “Welcome to the past kid. Try not to mess it up this time, huh?”

“H-how?”

At this, Kurama looks almost smug, “I still have a few tricks up my sleeve, brat. You didn’t think I told you  _ everything _ did you?”

“You kept  _ time travel  _ to yourself?! Kurama, do you know how many times that would have come in handy?! Why the hell didn’t you tell me?!”

Kurama looks annoyed now, “It only works once and I didn’t want to waste it because you didn’t like your ramen that day.”

She narrows her eyes at him, “I wouldn’t have used it for that,” she huffs out a sigh and swipes long blonde hair out of her face, “But I guess if you could only use it once then you chose wisely. There was no coming back from that.”

“Exactly,” Kurama hums, “Now, I do believe you should go find your teammates before they do something stupid and expose all of you.”

Naruko grins and steps forward, “You brought them back too?!” 

Kurama peers at her with that same fondness she’d grown used to over the years, “I couldn’t leave you alone, not this time around.”

She gives him a small appreciative smile before placing her hand over the seal keeping him locked in the cage, “Do you want me to remove this?”

Kurama sighs, “I would appreciate it but I’m not sure your younger body is up to handling my full power just yet. Your mind may be that of an adult but your body is a child’s and still very weak.”

She snorts, “I don’t think  _ weak _ is the right word but I see what you’re saying. I’m going to have to learn to fight on my own again, aren’t I?”

Kurama chuckles, “At least for now. I’m sure you’ll be quick to regain some of your strength and then we can see about removing this blasted seal.”

Naruko nods and then she’s opening her eyes in her old apartment and suddenly she can’t believe this is  _ real _ . She’s in the  _ past _ . She never could have imagined the possibility of going back in time to fix all the mistakes and save all her friends. She would be  _ damn sure _ none of them died this time.  _ None _ .

She hops out of bed, startled still by how small her body is and how  _ clumsy _ she is. God, was she really this  _ weak _ as a child? She has maybe a  _ fourth _ of the chakra she’s used to and her muscles are practically nonexistent. She sighs, she has a  _ lot _ of work to do if she wants to get back into prime fighting condition. Although, she supposes most normal children aren’t running around fighting long-dead Uchiha and psychopathic Rabbit Goddesses, much less the psycho Rabbits relatives.

She looks around her apartment, trying to figure out exactly  _ when _ she’s landed and spots her calendar hanging above her old wardrobe. She squints and then nearly faints when she sees what year it is. Holy hell. She’s fucking  _ eight _ . Eight years old and definitely still a lackluster Academy student who can’t even form a  _ clone _ properly. A  _ clone _ of all things. That’s literally her signature move and at this point she can’t even mold her chakra properly to form one. Dear God this was going to be rough.

She feels a small amount of disappointment when she realizes it’s too late to save Sasuke’s family. She wishes there was something they could have done about that but maybe they can at least get his brother cleared and brought back to Konoha before the sickness catches up to him. She can’t stand the thought of Sasuke losing his brother before really getting to know him if it can be avoided. He deserves that much and Itachi deserves it too. He gave up everything to protect his village and was branded a villain because of it. Fucking Danzo. 

Sitting around her apartment isn’t going to accomplish  _ anything  _ so she decides to go find her team and start some  _ real  _ planning. She throws on her old orange jacket, smiling slightly at the memories she has yet to make in it. So many things happened to her while she wore this coat until she eventually grew out of it and had to upgrade to a new one. This one had absolutely no defensive purposes and was far too baggy for her taste now, but it would work until she could replace it with something else.

Stepping into a peaceful Konoha made her pause and soak everything in. The sun was bright and warm on her skin and bathed Konoha in a beautiful light. People were bustling around and she could laughter and kids playing and  _ life _ all around her. She almost forgot what a happy Konoha looked like. It wasn’t perfect, even now, but it was far better than at the end when everyone was dying and burning. 

And then she hears the whispers and notices the disgusted looks thrown her way. Right. She’s the village monster right now, not the hero. She sighs, she forgot how awful people were to her as a child in the wake of the adoration and respect she earned as she saved the village over and over again. At least this time she  _ knew _ why they all hated her and she wasn’t as bothered by it because she knew eventually she would prove them all wrong. They were simply ignorant and would learn soon enough. 

She plasters her trademark grin on her face, hands folded at the back of her head and proceeds to ignore every single one of them and head for Sakura’s home. She’s not going to let it bother her, there’s way too much at stake. 

She’s one street over from the Haruno residence when a pink-haired ball of energy slams into her and knocks her to the ground with an ‘oof’.

“Naruko!” Sakura’s voice is high and reedy and Naruko has to bite back a laugh at how  _ tiny _ her teammate and friend is. 

“Sakura-chan! I was just coming to find you!” Naruko untangles herself from Sakura, brushing dirt from her clothes as she stands with an amused grin.

“What the  _ hell _ is going on?!” Sakura squeaks, her too-big-for-her-face green eyes blown wide in shock and uncertainty. 

Naruko notices some of the villagers throwing curious and slightly confused looks their at Sakura’s outburst and now she is laughing. She grabs Sakura’s hand and pulls her toward a more secluded alley so no one overhears. She also throws a seal on the wall to keep her ANBU security from listening in. She can feel them all around her and she’s caught glimpses of them while walking through the village. 

Sakura looks ready to burst, “Naruko!”

“Hold on, I need to make sure we aren’t overheard,” she tells her friend as she places one more seal on the opposite wall from the first, “Okay. We should be good now.”

“So? Explain!”

“Kurama sent us back in time.”

The look on Sakura’s face almost has Naruko laughing again, “I’m sorry, he did  _ what _ ?!”

“Sent us back in time. Quite a bit too it would seem. We’re eight.”

“What the  _ fuck _ ?! Since when can he do that?!” Sakura looks about as shocked as Naruko still feels and she’s glad to know her reaction was normal. As normal as one can react when being told they’re in the past. 

“Apparently since forever he just decided not to share,” she directs part of her comments inward, still a little peeved about being kept out of the loop on that handy little trick until this moment. 

“And again I say,  _ what the fuck _ ?! Why didn’t he use it sooner? We could have stopped so much carnage!” Sakura looks less surprised and more pissed now. 

“I asked him that and he says it’s a one off so he didn’t want to use it until he knew there were no other options.Still,  _ before _ we were laying in a bloody field  _ dying _ would have been preferred.”

Kurama grumbles in her mind, his annoyance and exasperation seeping through and she smirks. At least that part of their bond is still intact. Pissing off the fox was one of her favorite past times, it wouldn’t be any fun if he couldn’t still respond so easily. 

Sakura sighs and leans back against the wall and Naruko takes a chance to look over her teammate. Sakura is tiny as an eight year old. Raised as a civilian she has even less muscle mass than the younger shinobi children but there’s an intelligence in her eyes he never noticed when they were kids. It’s really not surprising she becomes the brains of their team when they grow older. Her pink hair is long and Naruko knows it must be pissing her off, Sakura preferring her short locks so the bad guys don’t have anything to grab onto. Right now she’s swept the long strands into a haphazard ponytail to keep them out of her face. Naruko knows she’s going to shear them off the second she gets ahold of a kunai. 

“So, did Kurama manage to bring back our last teammate too? Or do we have to deal with a brooding, idiotic, revenge-driven Uchiha again?” Sakura’s tone is playful but Naruko sees the hope in her eyes. 

“Kurama brought him back too, I was going to head to his place once I had you,” Naruko says with a grin, “Should we head that way or let him suffer for a little bit?”

“As much as I would  _ love _ to let him suffer as an eight year old all by himself for a bit we have a lot of planning to do if we want to fix things,” Sakura pushes off the wall and sighs, “Plus, he’s probably got kunai in his house which means I can fix this mess of hair.”

Naruko laughs, removing the seals and leading them back toward the main street, “Somehow, I knew that would be one of your first priorities.”

“I’m surprised you haven’t already chopped yours off,” Sakura eyes Naruko’s long, blonde hair tied up in twin tails on either side of her head. As a child she always wore her hair like this but as she grew older she found, like Sakura, it was more of a hindrance than anything and chopped it off. 

“I don’t know, I may keep it long this time. At least for a while. I was thinking about growing it out once the war was over and since it technically hasn’t happened yet I could always do it now,” Naruko shrugs, twirling a blonde strand around her finger. 

“I’m already sick of mine but mine also doesn’t like to go up the way yours does, it just gets in the way,” Sakura huffs, angrily swiping some stray strands out of her face. 

They pass the rest of their journey in a comfortable silence, taking in the village they grew up in with new eyes. Both of them were so lost in their surroundings when they reached the Uchiha compound they were almost surprised and a little saddened. Naruko was almost afraid if she blinked the village would be gone, just a burning crater in the ground again. 

Kurama brushed her mind encouragingly, reminding her this was real and it wasn’t going anywhere. They could take in the rest of the village later. 

Sasuke was waiting for them at his old home, looking very disgruntled and a little apprehensive as they approached, “Please tell me you can explain what’s going on?”

Naurko smirks and motions for them to go inside. Her ANBU are still close and she really doesn’t need them reporting back to the Hokage about the deranged fox-demon child who thinks she’s from the future. She’s pretty sure that’s a one way ticket to either T&I or a mental institution. Neither one sounds overly pleasant. 

Once they’re all gathered in Sasuke’s home and Naruko has once again placed her seals she settles at the table with her two teammates, “Sasuke, welcome to the past. Apparently Kurama was keeping a few secrets.”

“He could time travel? Why the  _ hell _ did he wait until we were  _ dying _ to use it?” Naruko has to bite back her laughter when Sasuke has practically the same reaction as her and Sakura. Apparently even years apart couldn’t change how similar they all thought.

“It’s a one-off and he didn’t want to use it until he had no other option. Obviously, us dying didn’t really leave him much of a choice. I just wish he could have squeezed out even one more year,” Naruko says the last part gently, acutely aware of the silence in the compound and this house. Silence that could have been avoided if not for fucking Danzo and his scheming,

Sasuke’s eyes cloud over with grief so profound it looks completely out of place on his childlike face before he blinks and they’re clear once again, “We may not be able to save my entire family but at least Itachi is still running around somewhere and now I know he isn’t actually a clan-killing bastard. Maybe I have a chance to actually connect with him again.”

Sasuke says it with a nonchalance Naruko recognizes all too well. It’s the same nonchalance he uses whenever something bothers him and doesn’t want anyone to know or pry. She sighs and lets it go for now, they have a lot of other things to figure out and Itachi is already on her list of things to fix. 

“So, what do we do now?” Sakura asks. 

“Danzo,” Sasuke practically growls and Naruko finds she’s in agreement but she also knows they aren’t anywhere  _ near _ strong enough to handle him right now. 

“While I wish we could kill the bastard right now he’d just kill us without even batting an eye,” Sakura voices exactly what Naruko is thinking and sounds just as disappointed about the prospect of waiting, “But that doesn’t mean we have to just sit here and ignore what he’s doing behind the scenes. There must be  _ some _ way we can disrupt his plans. Plus, we know Orochimaru is already watching you, Sasuke. I wouldn’t mind finding Kabuto and killing him slowly.”

“Kabuto is probably out of our league for a little while too but not as long as Danzo. He isn’t as strong right now as he was near the end so we shouldn’t have to wait too long before taking him on again. Besides, maybe we’ll get stronger even faster this time around. After all, we remember how to do everything we just need to reteach our bodies,” Naruko is already thinking of training regimes for them to get them back into fighting form. The physical side of being a shinobi has always been one of her strong suits. 

“So we train and grow stronger and try to find subtle ways to point the adults toward Danzo’s treachery?” Sasuke summarizes. 

Naruko and Sakura both nod and Naruko already feels better knowing they have some semblance of a plan in place. Now they just need to get stronger. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, please let me know what you think! I hope it's okay so far and you'll keep reading! I'm still finding the character's voices and their personalities as I go so bear with me!
> 
> -Mercy


	3. Rise and Start Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys I'm so happy to hear y'all like the first couple chapters of the story! I hope I can keep you entertained as this story continues! Comments are always welcome and appreciated! Thanks so much in advance!

They quickly decide Sasuke’s home will be the best for planning since he has it to himself and rarely has anyone stopping by. Naruko may live alone but the Sandaime still drops in unannounced sometimes to check on her and give her money for the month. She’s excited to see Jii-chan again. It’s been far too long since she saw him alive. She doesn’t count the Edo Tensei.

“Sasuke, I need a kunai,” Sakura is quick to request the weapon after they’ve decided on a basic course of action, already yanking her hair down and figuring out exactly how much she wants to cut off.

“For what? And why don’t _you_ have any?” Sasuke grumbles but still stands and moves to get her one.

“Because I need to chop some of this hair off, it’s ridiculous. And I don’t have any because unlike you I live in a _civilian_ household. I don’t think my parents started letting me keep them in the house until I graduated, and I couldn’t find any in my usual hiding spots.”

“Naruko, where are yours?” Sasuke asks, handing a kunai over to their pink-haired teammate.

“I didn’t actually grab them on my way out. I’m so used to sleeping with them I didn’t even realize,” Naruko suddenly feels very naked without her weapons pouch at her hip. How the hell did she forget that?

Sakura snorts, already hacking away at her hair, “Funny what peace makes you forget.”

“I didn’t think I remembered what peace even _was_ after so long,” Naruko mumbles, tracing patterns on the table in front of her. She can still smell ashes on the wind and hear the screams of her friends dying around her. It's surreal to be back in a world where none of that has happened. Where her friends are alive and _happy_ even. She can hardly remember what most of them looked like without the constant fear and stress of a war on their shoulders. 

Sakura’s hand covers Naruko’s and squeezes gently, “We’ll make sure it lasts this time.”

Naruko looks up and meets Sakura’s earnest and determined eyes and smiles, “You’re right. If we do this right, our friends won’t have to ever know the future we did.”

“Exactly.”

Sasuke shifts awkwardly, looking distinctly uncomfortable. Naruko places her hand over Sasuke’s now and wait until he looks up to speak, “We’re _all_ going to do better this time, yeah?”

Sasuke seems to relax slightly and he nods, “I promise.”

“Good,” Naruko squeezes his hand once and pulls away, “So, how about we start that training already? I’m ready to get strong again.”

Sakura slices the kunai through her hair one final time and breathes a sigh of relief. Her hair is shoulder length and a little choppy at the ends but she already looks more like the Sakura Naruko remembers, “Let’s do this. I can’t let Tsunade-sensei down!”

**✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧** **✧**

They use one of the old Uchiha training grounds, thankful to have somewhere they can train in relative privacy. Naruko can still feel her ANBU guards all around, hiding in trees and bushes and keeping a close watch on the village monster. She sighs, almost wishing she could go back to not realizing they were there.

“So, what first then?” Sakura asks, stretching and cracking her knuckles. She looks more alive now, ready to take on the world and win this time. It’s a reminder of how much they can accomplish now. How much they can fix and make better.

“Well, we can spar or we can work on chakra control. After all, what’s the first lesson Kaka-sensei gave us?” Naruko grins in remembrance at their younger selves and their sensei on that wave mission.

“Tree walking,” Sakura’s grin is wolfish now, “As I recall, I was the best last time. Care to see if that’s still true?”

Naruko glances at Sasuke who is smirking in challenge at their friend, “Bring it on.”

Naruko laughs and races for the nearest copse of trees, “I’m going to win this time, believe it!”

“We’ll see dead-last.”

“I haven’t been dead last in a long time, teme,” Naruko winks at her friend with a grin.

The three of them grow silent and focus on their chakra, working to concentrate it into their feet. Naruko can already tell her control is shit compared to what she remembers, and this is going to take _practice_. God, how did she _survive_ the first time around?

Next to her, Sakura is already trying to take her first tentative steps. Her friend’s face is hardened in intense concentration, her eyebrows twitching sporadically. After another minute of focusing she places her foot firmly on the trunk and it seems to almost adhere to the wood. A small smirk flicks over her face as she opens her eyes and takes another step, this one also sticking firmly to the tree. Sakura glances over at Naruko and winks, “Told you I would be first again. You two may be powerhouses but control has _always_ been my strong suit.”

And with that, Sakura takes off up the tree without so much as a slip and Naruko is left in the dust. She glances over as Sasuke who looks just as disgruntled by the development as she feels. At least she isn’t the only one struggling with this. Chakra has never been an issue for her, control is a completely different story. The sheer amount of charka she has flowing through her makes control even harder and took her _years_ of training to master. She just hopes this time will be easier since her mind knows how she just needs to teach her body.

She takes a steadying breath and tries again, remembering everything she learned from her sensei over the years. All the tips and tricks to help keep her chakra under control. It takes another few minutes before she’s confident enough to place one foot on the trunk, trying very hard not to let too much chakra slip out too much but also needing to make sure _enough_ gathers in her feet to be useful.

The loud splintering of wood makes her wince and she pulls back some of her chakra. She cracks an eye open and slowly takes another step, satisfied when she doesn’t splinter the wood this time. This was easier the second time around when she knew what she was doing. She barely even knew what chakra _was_ the first time around, and it was years before she learned her nature. She was excited to see how much faster things came to her. It would be nice to be one of the top students and not the dead-last.

Next to her, Sasuke was making progress as well. He faced the opposite problem from her on his first step though, his foot slipping off the trunk abruptly. On his third attempt he managed to find the balance and his foot stuck. Refusing to let him beat her again Naruko took off running up the tree, only slipping slightly and casing a couple of foot-shaped indents in the trunk before she reached the top. She was satisfied to see Sasuke still making his way up when she settled on a wide branch across from Sakura.

“You’re getting slow in your old age, Teme,” she teases with a shit-eating grin, kicking her feet lazily.

Sasuke throws her a mock glare, “As if, Dobe. I _let_ you win so you wouldn’t cry about losing for the rest of the day.”

Naruko barks out a short laugh and shakes her head while Sakura chuckles next to her, “I’m sure it has nothing to do with how amazing I am.”

“Not at all.”

Sakura rolls her eyes at the two of them, muttering an affectionate “idiots” under her breath before dropping back to the ground on silent feet, “Come on. We should spar a bit too. All the chakra control in the world won’t mean anything if we can’t even fight properly.”

Naruko hops down next to her, Sasuke landing on her other side and they all make their way to the middle of the clearing they chose for their training session. There’s a large pond off to the side with a small pier jutting out on one side and Naruko sees Sasuke’s eyes linger on it for a long moment. She bumps his shoulder with hers, “You okay?”

Sasuke seems to remember he isn’t alone and blinks away the wistfulness in his eyes, “Fine.”

“You know you can talk to us. I’m pretty sure you _not_ talking to anyone is part of the reason you went all batshit crazy.”

“I did not go crazy,” Sasuke huffs, but even he doesn’t sound like he believes it.

“Uh huh, then what would you call it then?”

“Driven.”

“Driven to craziness,” Naruko smirks and bumps his shoulder again with a wink, “Come on, I’m sure some physical activity will help get your mind off whatever’s bothering you. And then later, after I’ve pummeled you into the ground a few times and you’re worn down I’ll bug you to talk some more.”

Sasuke huffs out a semblance of a laugh, “Tch. We’ll see about that.”

“Are you two done flirting or should I wait?” Sakura calls, looking pointedly at them from the center of the clearing.

Naruko feels her cheeks heat up instantly and splutters out some form of response even she can’t understand while Sasuke goes still next to her. When she glances at him she’s pretty sure she can see pink in his cheeks as well before he clears his throat, rolls his eyes and walks toward Sakura, “As if I would be flirting with dead-last over there.”

“Hey! I already told you, I’m not dead-last anymore!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Another chapter down! I know it's kind of slow right now still but I'm trying to get them all settled back in somewhat before totally throwing a curveball at them. I'm sure Kurama appreciates the break. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed and keep coming back for more!
> 
> -Mercy


	4. We're Getting Stronger Now

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, so I'm not really sure how I feel about this chapter. but I can't think of anything else to do with it. it's more of a bridge to get things rolling than anything. I hope you enjoy it just the same!!!

Sparring ended up being a lot harder than Naruko remembered. She was panting after two matches, drenched in sweat and dreaming about at least seven giant bowls of ramen. Thankfully, Sakura and Sasuke looked about as done in as she felt. They had so much work to do before they were ready for any sort of confrontation with Kabuto that didn’t end with them all dead or captured.

Sasuke and Sakura were finishing up their last match and Naruko was sprawled over the grass as the sun reached its peak in the sky. The morning was nice and not too hot but now, as the day grew older, the heat was becoming scorching quickly. She usually loved the heat but right now, covered in sweat and dog tired, she just wanted cool air and food.

“So, ramen?” She calls over to her teammates when the sound of trading blows finally dies out and all she can hear is them panting.

Sakura groans, “Ramen? Already?”

“Hey, do you know how long it’s been since I’ve eaten at Ichiraku? I’ve been deprived! Starved!” she lets her voice go a little whiney, a little high and juts her out bottom lip out plaintively. She is not above pouting to get some ramen from Ichiraku in her. It’s been _years_ since she’s been able to enjoy the beauty of a big bowl of Ichiraku ramen. Or, you know, five.

Sakura sighs out in defeat and Naruko knows she’s won. Sasuke doesn’t usually argue too much over food so long as it isn’t sweet and doesn’t involve soybeans, “Fine. Ramen it is I guess.”

Naruko lets out a whoop of excitement, springing up from the ground and feeling more energetic at the prospect of good ramen, “You’re the best Sakura-chan! Let’s go! I’m starving!”

“You’re _always_ starving, Ko-chan,” Sakura laughs. Naruko grins at the old nickname, feeling a new warmth blooming in her chest. It takes her a moment to realize that warmth is _happiness_. When was the last time she felt _genuinely_ happy? She can’t even remember.

✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧ ✧

The village streets are a little more crowded now as they wind their way toward Ichiraku and more than a few people glare as she passes by and catches numerous rude comments thrown her way. If she didn’t love this village and its people so much, she’s pretty sure she would have become a villain. Who talks to a _child_ like this? It’s not like she can’t hear them calling her a monster under their breath, talking about how they wished _she_ died instead of the Yondaime. She wonders how many of them realize he was her father and if she died everyone else would have too. Where did they think Kurama went that night?

Sakura and Sasuke seem to notice the hostility directed her way and move in closer. She can practically smell the protectiveness radiating off them as they glare down everyone they pass. She’s glad to have them with her, even if the looks and the gossip don’t bother her like they used to. It’s easier knowing she has these two by her side. She wouldn’t want anyone else watching her back.

Ichiraku is empty when they arrive which she’s thankful for. They claim seats at the counter and Naruko can feel her mouth watering already as she breathes in the scent of ramen around her. Her stomach grumbles loudly and she blushes at Sakura’s giggle and Sasuke’s snort of amusement. She can’t help it she has a nine-tailed fox living inside of her who _always_ seems to be hungry.

“Naru-chan! Back again? And you brought friends with you!” Teuchi’s grin is wide and genuine as he takes in the three children sitting at the counter.

“You know me! I’m always in the mood for ramen!” Naruko grins broadly at the man. Teuchi and his daughter Ayame were always kind to her. They didn’t see a monster, they simply saw a hungry child with a love for ramen just like them.

“You want the usual then?” Teuchi asks.

Naruko nods excitedly, “Definitely! I’m starving today!”

Teuchi laughs, “I’ll have Ayame prepare extra then. What about you two?”

“We’ll have the same as Naruko. She obviously knows what’s good with how often she’s here,” Sakura smiles widely at the old man. She knew Teuchi and Ayame were fond of Naruko when they were older but she never realized they were two of the only people to show the blonde kindness when she was young. Sakura decided she liked Teuchi and his daughter even more now.

Naruko waited impatiently for her food, eager to dig into the steaming bowl of heaven she knew was coming. Sakura chuckles softly beside her, recognizing the impatience in her friend and the excitement oozing off of her. She didn’t realize how much she missed this side of Naruko. 

Teuchi and Ayame appear with three steaming bowls after a few more minutes and Naruko practically jumps out of her seat with excitement. Ayame giggles at the blonde’s eagerness and sets the first bowl down in front of her, “Enjoy, Naru-chan! There’s plenty more whenever you’ve finished this!”

“Itadakimasu~!” When Naruko takes her first bite she almost purrs with happiness. Before she knows it the first bowl is gone and another is being placed in front of her. 

Beside her, Sakura and Sasuke eat at a more acceptable pace and by the time she’s polishing off her fourth bowl they’re both finishing their first. She leans back in her seat happily, patting her full tummy and debating a nice, long nap somewhere in the sun. She hasn’t been this satisfied in _ages_.

“Arigato Teuchi-san!” she singsongs as she places her money on the counter with a wave and follows her teammates out of the small shop. Teuchi grins and waves and tells her he’ll see her again soon.

“I could use a nap,” Naruko yawns, stretching like a cat in the sun as they turn back toward the Uchiha compound. The sun is sinking a little lower now, growing closer to evening. It’s not as hot now either but that could also be because she isn’t dead tired and sweating after two intense sparring matches. Now the sun just feels soft and warm on her skin, lulling her further toward a much needed nap.

“I need a nap after watching you eat like that. I forgot how much you could put away, Ko-chan!” Sakura laughs and shakes her head, “How the hell do you stay so small when you eat that much?”

“Perks of having a nine-tailed fox inside me,” Naruko says with a wink, folding her arms behind her head and tilting her head to the sun. 

“I never thought I would be jealous you had Kurama sealed inside you until now,” Sakura says with a laugh.

They make the rest of their trip in companionable silence, simply enjoying each other’s company and the ability to wander without the threat of death hanging over their shoulders. Naruko finds herself taking everything in again, simply soaking up the happiness in the air. She knows, even now, there is darkness lurking in Konoha. Darkness with eyes on his arms and the need for power in his heart. But Danzo is out of her reach still and she must be okay with that until she’s stronger. It’s going to be hard and it will be a long process, but it’ll be worth it, to see his face at the end when death comes for him. To see him realize he’s lost.

There’s someone waiting for them at the entrance to the Uchiha compound. Someone she recognizes almost instantly. It’s been years since she’s seen him but Sarutobi Hiruzen was a huge part of her childhood and one of the few adults to look after her growing up without the same scorn as the rest of the village. Her heart skips happily in her chest and she’s running to him before she even realizes he shouldn’t be here.

“Jii-chan!” Naruko throws her arms around the Sandaime’s waist, squeezing tightly and inhaling his scent. Pipe smoke and trees. It’s her favorite.

“Naru-chan?” he sounds almost uncertain as he pats her back gently, “Is everything alright?”

She pulls back with a wide smile, “Everything is perfect! What are you doing here?”

He hums at this and glances at her teammates behind her, “I was going to ask you the same thing. I wasn’t aware you were all friends?”

Naruko blinks and laughs sheepishly, “Yeah! I didn’t ever tell you? They’re my _best friends_.”

Hiruzen eyes her strangely, seeming to stare right into her soul looking for a lie. She keeps the smile plastered on her face, trying to appear as innocent as possible. He seems to decide something finally and motions for them to follow him, “I believe we have some things to discuss, hm?”

Naruko sags. He knows. Of _course,_ he knows. He didn’t live long enough to be Hokage not once, but _twice_ , on sheer luck. Hiruzen is smart. Always has been and she was a fool thinking she could trick him.

Naruko glances back and Sakura and Sasuke, a question in her gaze. Sakura just shrugs and Sasuke looks like he doesn’t have any bright ideas either. Well, time to face the music she supposes. She hoped she would have a little longer to adjust and just be a kid before world-changing plans went into place. Oh well. She knew she would have been bored within a week anyway. She’s not used to lazing around doing nothing.

They head to Sasuke’s home and Hiruzen waits until they’re all settled around the same table the three of them planned around that morning before clearing his throat, “I believe there’s something you need to tell me.”

Naruko fidgets and tries for innocence again, “Like what, Jii-chan?”

Hiruzen levels her with a disappointed look, “Naru-chan, you know me better than that. I can tell when you’re hiding something. Out with it. You and these two never interacted before today and suddenly you’re training and going out to eat together. And from what I hear, you’re already tree walking and sparring above a novice Academy student level.”

Damn ANBU reporting everything she does back to him.

“You’re not going to believe me even if I tell you,” she sighs, her tone shifting easily from innocent child to jaded young adult.

Hiruzen blinks slightly at the sudden shift but otherwise doesn’t react, “Try me.”

Naruko glances at the other two for confirmation. Sakura nods hesitantly and Sasuke just waves her on. She sighs and takes a breath, sorting through her thoughts and deciding how much she’s going to tell him, “We are from the future.”

This is obviously not the answer Hiruzen was expecting. He seems to almost freeze before regaining his composure, puffing on his ever-present pipe and clearly gathering his thoughts before speaking, “The future?”

Naruko nods, “About fifteen years to be exact.”

“Probably closer to fourteen. You weren’t quite twenty-three when we died,” Sakura says matter-of-factly. She’s the tactician Naruko remembers from the battlefield now. Brief and to the point. There’s no point keeping up the façade here. And since Naruko _knows_ the ANBU are listening in they won’t have to be careful around them anymore either. Maybe this is a good thing. They’ll be able to move around easier and plan with more freedom.

“And how, exactly, did you accomplish such a thing? I’ve never heard of a jutsu capable of such a feat,” Hiruzen looks like he’s willing to entertain them, still not certain he entirely believes their story.

“ _We_ didn’t. It was Kurama,” Naruko tells him.

At this, Hiruzen does look shocked, “Kurama? You mean…”

“The nine-tails,” Sasuke says now, looking like he has a lot more he would like to say on the subject but decides to keep quiet.

“How do you know anything about that? That’s an S-Rank secret.”

Naruko laughs, “Maybe right now, but in the future, _everyone_ knows about Kurama. And the other eight tailed beasts as well.”

Hiruzen seems to lose the color in his face and he pauses with his pipe lifted halfway to his face, “There’s no way you could know of such things unless you were telling the truth, but it still doesn’t make sense.”

“Trust me, we’re still trying to figure it out too. We were dying on a battlefield one moment and the next we were here,” Naruko shrugs.

“And this is your first day here? In the past?”

They all nod.

Hiruzen sighs and turns sad, regret-filled eyes on Naruko, “Then you know who your parents are? What happened the night you were born?”

Naruko nods, unable to fully meet his gaze. She’s accepted her parents’ sacrifice and she _understands_ it but she still wishes she could have grown up with them and truly _known_ them. She wants more than borrowed time and chakra preserved conversations, “I do.”

Hiruzen places an old, wrinkled hand on hers, “I’m sorry we did not do better by you.”

Naruko gives him a sad smile and does meet his gaze now, “You did what you thought would be best. And it worked out alright in the end. You know how stubborn I am. Proving myself to the village was just a challenge for me and trust me, I was more than up to meeting it.”

Sakura snorts, “I’ll say. How many times did you save the village, again?”

“There was more than once? What kind of future did you three come from?” Hiruzen has gone from the quiet, regretful old man to the sharp, concerned Hokage.

“Not a good one. Which is why Kurama sent us back. We need to fix things so that future _never_ happens,” Naruko says firmly, feeling the fierce shinobi she became writhing inside of her. She _refuses_ to lose.

“Very well. Where do we start?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well? Not too slow or terrible I hope! I didn't originally plan on having anyone know about them time-traveling but I decided it would work better for the story if at least one person knew about them. They need an adult on their side and who better than a Hokage, right? Let me know what you think!
> 
> -Mercy


End file.
